Walking tour, Dracula county to painted monasteries in Moldova

Dienstag, \d\e\r 12. Juli 2011

June 2010 was a awkward summer month in Romania, with plenty of rain and cold weather. Not for Sonia and Scott, who spent about two weeks in the mountains, at the painted monasteries in Bucovina and in the Danube Delta.

We trekked through the Bucegi mountains, around Bran, Poarta, Simon, Moeciu, Fundata mountain villages and we enjoyed really good weather. It only rained over night, when we were safe back at our pension in Poarta (great food, brilliant place, quiet and relaxing place to rest after a long walking day) or at Padina.

After a short stay in Brasov, the road up north to Bucovina was pretty rainy – it wasn’t really a problem, it just made the road trip more bearable. The three days of visits to the painted monasteries were perfect for trekking. Chilly and windy, the kind of weather that offers perfect visibility and pushes you further on and on the trail. The mixture of thrilling archeological and religious monuments and impressive forests and pastures was really something else.

The painted monasteries in Bucovina are for good reason one of the Romanian touristic high-lights. Sucevita, Moldovita, Vornet, Humor – these are the names you’ll find in any tourist guide, but don’t miss Probota. Probably the best preserved inside-the-church painting in Bucovina.

We left Sonia and Scott on the banks of the Danube, in Tulcea, ready to head for their last part of the Romanian vacation, deep inside the Danube Delta. It was a great time spent with them across Romania, enjoying the mountains, the rural life, the food, the conversations…

Horia Marusca, July 2011, Brasov

Testimonial:

Hi Iulian,

I wanted to thank you for organizing a fantastic trekking trip in the Carpathian Mountains and a great driving trip to the painted monasteries in Moldova. My wife and I enjoyed ourselves tremendously in Romania. You were very thorough and organized in all facets of the planning process and it helped our trip go smoothly. I also wanted to let you know we enjoyed working with Horia as our guide. He was a calm and knowledgeable guide the entire time. Horia was also flexible and was able to plan a day of trekking in Moldova we hadn’t planned in the itinerary. Anyway, thank you again for helping during the planning process, taking care of the details and making our trip to Romania an excellent time. Many people have asked about our trip and I will certainly pass your name along to them all.